AU-MSU, 9/9

Hey everyone.

First of all, happy birthday to my wife. Hurry home!

OK. Now on to football.
AUBURN 34, MSU 0

• Auburn's offense looked very good to me. MSU packed the line of scrimmage with big boys to stop the run and that plan worked. Yet QB Brandon Cox was deft with the play-action passing game. WR Courtney Taylor caught nine balls. The passing game looked healthy. It didn't against Washington State.
  
• I found it odd that Tuberville said he began thinking of next week's game against LSU during the MSU game. That's an unusual twist.
  
• More excellent play out of DTs Sen'Derrick Marks and Pat Sims. They're difference-makers inside. MSU really tried to run between the tackles and it just wasn't happening. NG Josh Thompson had something to do with that as well.
  
• John Vaughn's 55-yard FG was fun to watch. Even the MSU fans were clapping for that kick. I'm not real pro-kicker on the whole, but good kickers are easy to appreciate.
  
• Scott Field, MSU's home, still isn't much. The crowd was announced at 43,640. I guess it's hard to spend money on renovations when the home fans won't fill the small stadium you have.
  
• What makes Cox so good is that he knows what he can do -- and what he can't do. He'll throw balls out of bounds now when the situation is terminal. He makes one overly ambitious throw per game, it seems, though it's always deep downfield. He was nearly intercepted on his risky pass Saturday. If the throw had gone another seven yards, though, it would have been a first-class touchdown. I don't think his range exceeds 40 yards.
  
• Freshman LB Craig Stevens finished with five tackles. He's going to be a good one. I still think he'll redshirt. Surely Tray Blackmon will be back at some point. Right?